Dark Love
by Zim'sMostLoyalServant
Summary: Roodaka is always depicted as a cold, heartless witch. But what if she does care for more than herself? Roodaka/Teridax. Twoshot. Dedicated to Saya Moonshadow. COMPLETE
1. Part 1

**A/N: Welcome to my first Bionicle fanfic. I've actually had this in my head for a while now, but this is the first chance I've had to write it.**

**I would also like to dedicate this fic to my good friend Saya Moonshadow, who is, in my opinion, the best author of Bionicle fanfiction on this site. This one's for you, Saya!**

**Disclaimer: All Bionicle characters belong to LEGO and Greg Farshtey.**

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

**Dark Love**

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Roodaka of Xia was not a sentimental being. Far from it, actually. In the several millennia of her existence, she had thrown away every personal relationship she'd ever had in order to advance her position amongst her fellow Vortixx and whatever organization she belonged to at the time. Heck, her name had become another word for "treachery" in the Matoran language… at least, if that lying pile of scrap metal Spiriah was to be believed.

So, no, she wasn't sentimental. But she wasn't heartless.

XXXXXXX

Of course, there was a time when she would have agreed with those who called her a coldblooded monster (pretty much anyone she'd ever met). After all, during her rite of passage climb up the Mountain of Xia, she had allowed the sentient mound of rock to devour her climbing partner without a second thought. And ever since, she hadn't felt any remorse when she thought of that day. In fact, she usually got a laugh or two out of the memories.

And then, when she'd joined the Dark Hunters for training, she had once again proven her ruthlessness. That pathetic excuse for an Air Toa, Nidhiki, had come to her, all but begging her to help him get off of Odina. She had agreed- then had promptly ratted him out to the Shadowed One. She had even used her Rhotuka spinners to mutate the former guardian of Metru Nui into an insectoid mutant, as per the would-be dictator's instructions. The leader of the Dark Hunters had been so pleased, he had not only charged her nothing for her training, he had let her actually leave the island base_ without_ joining his ranks.

The last she had seen of Nidhiki, the now spider-like ex-Toa had been standing on Odina's beach, glaring at her with narrowed crimson eyes.

Roodaka had laughed until nightfall.

XXXXXXX

Roodaka was sure she could have had a very nice career as a Dark Hunter. Assassinating important leaders, looting villages, wiping out entire islands… all while getting paid for it. She probably would have become influential enough to rival Lariska and Ancient for leadership of the organization once the Shadowed One finally died.

However, Roodaka had her sights set a little higher. She had always been attracted to power, so her ultimate goal was to join the most powerful organization on the planet: the Brotherhood of Makuta. The ancient race of Shadow beings must have heard of her and been impressed, for when she contacted them seeking employment, they hadn't simply ignored her or had her killed for bothering them. Instead, they had asked her to meet a representative of theirs on some Mata Nui-forsaken spit of land in the middle of nowhere.

She had arrived at the meeting place- only to be ambushed by a squadron of Rahkshi. She didn't remember much of the fight, but she did know that between her Rhotuka, her Catcher Claws, and her own latent Shadow energies, she had killed or incapacitated every single one of those disgusting, oversized lizards. It was at that point that she had become aware of clapping hands. _Large_ clapping hands. She had spun around, weapons at the ready, only to nearly drop them in shock.

Standing on a rock ledge above her was none other than Teridax, Makuta of Metru Nui, and leader of the Brotherhood itself. "Your reputation is well deserved, Roodaka of Xia," he had said, his booming voice echoing throughout the island, "I am impressed. And that is not something that is easy to do."

At that particular point in time, Roodaka was very glad for her dark coloring. It covered up the embarrassing fact that she actually _blushed_ at the comment. "T-Thank you, sir," she had stammered. She then proceeded to kick herself mentally for showing such weakness. Teridax hadn't noticed apparently, for he had continued on. "My brethren and I could use a warrior of your caliber in our service. In fact, I have a particular mission in mind that I think you would be perfect for. What do you say?"

Roodaka had needed only a moment to consider the proposition. She lowered herself to one knee, and said, "I pledge my loyalty to you and the Brotherhood, Lord Teridax." A grin had split the Makuta's Kanohi Kraahkan as she said that. "Excellent," he had said as he magnetically gathered up the remains of the Rahkshi, "Come. We have work to do."

Roodaka had followed her new master, a slight spring in her step. She had always considered herself heartless, caring only for herself. But she loved power… and she could tell just from this one meeting that Teridax was power wearing a mask.

XXXXXXX

Shortly after arriving on the Brotherhood's home island of Destral, Teridax had filled his new solider in on her mission: A short while earlier, Teridax's bodygaurds, the Toa Hagah, had turned against the Makuta. They had raided a Brotherhood fortress and stolen an extremely important artifact- the Kanohi Avohkii, the legendary Mask of Light. Roodaka had nodded in understanding. As creatures that were effectively living shadows, the Makuta would be extremely weak against someone yielding such a mask. _Especially _if it were a Toa of Light, should such a being ever come into existence.

In order to retrieve the Avohkii, Teridax had assembled a force to hunt the Hagah down and capture them, and he wanted Roodaka to lead the hunt. Roodaka had asked if he wanted them dead or alive, to which Teridax had chuckled and responded, "Either one, as long as you retrieve the mask, my dear." A warm feeling had run through Roodaka's body when he called her "My dear." She didn't know why, but she liked being called that.

She pushed those thoughts to the back of her mind. She couldn't let a little lust distract her from her mission, after all.

A little while later, Teridax had introduced her to the Brotherhood servant who would be co-leading the strike force hunting down the Hagah. Roodaka had eyed her new associate with a critical eye: red and silver armor, horns, clearly a member of the ruler-caste of Stelt… and judging by the look in his crimson eyes, he was a complete and utter coward. She didn't know how this Sidorak (and what kind of stupid name was that, anyway?) had gotten this far in the Brotherhood's ranks, but quite frankly, she didn't give a stone rat's ass. She didn't need him to get the job done; she'd drive the Toa Hagah into the ground, retrieve the Avohkii, and earn her place by Teridax's side.

The Makuta of Metru Nui had then shown his two lieutenants the force they would command: hordes of Visorak spiders, automated Exo-Toa suits, and a few Dark Hunters on loan from the Shadowed One. Roodaka had barely registered that fact when a familiar voice shouted at her from across the valley where the Brotherhood soldiers had assembled, "YOU!"

The Vortixx female had spun around to find a familiar green being racing at her. "You treacherous witch!" Nidhiki shouted as he opened his claws in anticipation of grabbing her in them. "I'll kill you for what you did to me!"

Roodaka had readied her Catcher Claws, but she didn't need them. Teridax waved one of his hands, and the former Air Toa went flying through the air, ultimately crashing into the servant-caste Steltan who seemed to be his partner. "Try that again, Nidhiki," Teridax had stated coldly, "and I will send you back to Odina in pieces." Nidhiki had growled as he stood up, but didn't try anything.

Teridax then turned to Roodaka with a raised eyebrow. "So," he said, "the rumors concerning Nidhiki's transformation are true. I should introduce you to Mutran sometime. I think you'd get along nicely." The leader of the Brotherhood had then turned on his heel, and continued to inspect the small army before him. Sidorak followed closely, while Roodaka trailed behind, deep in thought.

She didn't bother trying to figure whether her master's statement was a compliment or an insult (it was probably both). She was too busy trying to figure out something far more important: Why had he protected her, knowing full well she could take care of herself?

XXXXXXX

It took only a few days for the forces commanded by Roodaka and Sidorak to find the Toa's encampment, somewhere on the northern continent. Roodaka had allowed herself a small laugh at the time; the fools had gotten cocky, and had left themselves vulnerable. Apparently, they thought their betrayal of Teridax meant that the Brotherhood would be too weak to come after them. And people said Vortixx were self-centered…

Roodaka nodded at Sidorak, who in turn shouted out the command to attack. The Visorak swarmed down into the valley where the Hagah were spending the night, followed shortly after by the Exo-Toa and the Dark Hunters. The Toa were taken by surprise, but soon they started making a dent in the Brotherhood forces; even as she watched, the Toa Hagah of Earth activated his Mask of Growth, growing to the size of one of the Exo-Toa, then sent several of the machines flying into the swarm of Visorak with a swing of his Seismic Spear. Before any of them could get up, the Toa Hagah of Ice froze them solid with his Sub-Zero Spear.

"If you want something done right, do it yourself," Roodaka muttered, before jumping down into the valley herself. She soon found herself trading Rhotuka spinners with the Toa Hagah of Water, who glared at her from behind the boulder she was using as cover. "The Makuta must be desperate," she shouted over the din of battle, "if they're sending Pit-spawn like you to do their dirty work." Roodaka growled, but then a smirk appeared on her face. "It appears you are the desperate ones, Toa," she said with a laugh, gesturing towards the rest of the battle.

The Toa Hagah of Stone had been caught in one of Nidhiki's energy webs, and as Roodaka and the Water Toa watched, several Visorak launched paralysis Rhotuka into him, leaving him incapacitated. The Ice Toa was locked in hand-to-hand combat with the Dark Hunter Krekka, who was clearly overpowering his smaller opponent. And the Earth Toa was being backed into a corner by the remaining Exo-Toa. Suddenly, a group of Suukorak jumped down from the ridge above the distracted Toa Hagah and simultaneously launched their shock Rhotuka at him, encasing him in an energy field that got right to work shrinking him back to normal size.

Out of the corner of her eye, Roodaka saw that the Water Toa appeared to be in a state of shock from the sight before her eyes. Seizing her opportunity, Roodaka launched herself into the air, and fired a blast of Shadow energy from her Catcher Claws. The Toa of Water brought up her shield to protect herself, but the blast hit the ground in front of her, sending her flying. She hit the ground hard, and when Roodaka landed and walked over to her, the Vortixx found her opponent to be quite unconscious. Turning around, Roodaka saw that the Toa of Ice had finally been knocked out by Krekka, meaning that the battle was now finished. Roodaka smirked- then noticed Sidorak calmly strolling down the path from the top of the valley to the floor.

"Nice of you to join us," Roodaka said with a sneer. "No reason to get my hands dirty, not when there's someone else to do the job," Sidorak said, shrugging. Roodaka muttered a few curses in Xian, and then switched back to Basic and said, "In any case, we've caught the traitors. Send message to-"

"But, we didn't get all of them."

Roodaka's head snapped up to glare at Krekka, who had been the one to interrupt her. "What?" she asked coldly. Krekka whimpered slightly, and said in a small voice, "We didn't get all of them. There's supposed to be six, but we only got four. That leaves… uh, that leaves…" Krekka trailed off as he tried to do the simple arithmetic to figure out how many Toa were left. "Two, you idiot," Nidhiki snapped, then muttered, "Mata Nui above, what did I do to deserve being partnered with this moron?"

"Besides selling out your team and city to the world's largest group of mercenaries?" Sidorak asked with a laugh. Then Nidhiki snarled at him, and the Steltan suddenly found something interesting to do on the other side of the valley. Roodaka ignored the exchange and walked over to the Stone and Earth Toa, who were the only members of their team still conscious. "So, tell me," she asked, her voice soft as silk, "where would I find your two missing friends?" "You really wanna know?" the Earth Toa asked, struggling against the energy field still holding him. "Bomonga, _don't_!" the Stone Toa hissed, his mouth barely moving, as he was still mostly paralyzed. "Relax, Pouks, I know what I'm doing," the Earth Toa- Bomonga, apparently- snapped back at his friend.

"Well, if you two are done," Roodaka interrupted, the forced patience evident in her voice, "Where. Do I go. To find. Your friends?" Bomonga muttered something under his breath. "What was that?" Roodaka asked, leaning down so that she was almost face-to-face with the Toa. Bomonga then suddenly reared his head back as far as he could in the energy field, then shot it forward and spat in Roodaka's eye. "I said to go to Karzhani, you piece of Kikanalo dung!"

Nidhiki burst out laughing, followed closely after by Krekka- although, it seemed quite obvious that the big white-and-blue brute was only laughing because his partner was. Roodaka glared at the two Dark Hunters, then shot a blast of Shadow energy into Bomonga and Pouks, knocking both unconscious. "Lock them up," she snapped at the still snickering ex-Toa/ex-gladiator team, "Inform Lord Teridax that we've captured four of the traitors. And since that the other two are likely to come after them, tell him that we're going to use them as bait."

As Nidhiki, Krekka, and the rest of the Brotherhood forces carried the captive Toa away, Sidorak walked back over to his Vortixx partner, looking relieved that Nidhiki had left. "Is this such a wise move?" he asked, "Lord Teridax told us to-" "Retrieve the mask," Roodaka cut Sidorak off, "And I'm_ going_ to retrieve the mask. But seeing as these fools don't have it, I'm willing to bet their two missing friends _do_. So when they come for these four, we get the remaining Hagah, _and_ the mask." "Oh," Sidorak said, sounding impressed, "Why didn't I think of that?"

Roodaka could think of several reasons, but decided against saying any of them out loud. Instead she thought of the praise that she would receive from Teridax for all her hard work. For some reason, she felt that a few kind words from him were worth more than any monetary rewards she could be given.

XXXXXXX

A few days later, word reached the Brotherhood forces that the remaining two Toa Hagah- a Toa of Fire and a Toa of Air- were on the warpath, crossing the continent, wiping out any Makuta servants that stood in their way. Roodaka was still confident, however, that nothing the Toa did would- or could- result in victory.

Then she heard that the pair had defeated Teridax in battle.

Her heart leapt into her throat as the thought of Teridax being hurt twisted in her stomach like a knife. She was distracted from her pain when Sidorak snidely commented, "Driven from the field of battle by two Toa? Ha! Either he's not nearly as strong as the stories say, or he's just a coward." The Steltan had then burst out laughing, only to be cut off when Roodaka slammed her foot into his crotch. She left her comrade writhing in pain on the ground and stormed off.

As she did, she wondered why she reacted the way she did when she heard of Teridax's defeat. Then it hit her- the way she acted when she met him, the way she felt when he complimented her, her reaction to hearing he was possible hurt… she was _in love_ with Teridax.

As that thought came to her, she looked up to see the four captured Toa Hagah in their cage. She then thought of the day she had met Teridax, and she looked down at her mutation Rhotuka. An evil grin split her face, and she started to laugh. Let the fools come for their friends. There would be a little surprise waiting for them.

She loved her master, and she would make these fools _**pay**_ for what they did to him.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

**To be continued**

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

**A/N: Wow- I'm worse at writing romance than I thought. Oh well, at least I'm getting this written down and out of my head. Oh, and this was supposed to be a oneshot, but now I realize its going to be too long for that, so it'll probably be a two or three parter. We'll see happens. Read and review!**


	2. Part 2

**A/N: Here's part two. I would have gotten this up sooner, but my Internet connection went dead for a few days.**

**Basically, this covers the time from the creation of the Rahaga to the end of **_**Web of Shadows**_**.**

**Disclaimer: All Bionicle characters belong to LEGO and Greg Farshtey.**

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Roodaka had taken extreme satisfaction out of the Toa Hagah's screams as her mutation Rhotuka changed them into shrunken, twisted creatures- the size of Turaga, but with the heads of Rahkshi. "Huh," she had muttered to herself, watching the former Toa writher in pain on the floor of their cage, their bodies still faintly glowing from the energies that had altered their forms. "Something wrong?" Sidorak asked, his tone suggesting he didn't really care beyond whether or not she'd take whatever was wrong out on him. "Not really," Roodaka said, "I was just wondering what to call them now."

Sidorak blinked. "Come again?"

Roodaka smirked. "I like to come up with clever new names for things I've created- or changed, in this case."

Sidorak nodded in understanding, then took a look at their prisoners and then blurted out, "Turaga Rahkshi?" Roodaka turned to look at her partner and raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "Just a suggestion," he said with a shrug. Roodaka snorted, then said, "They're not truly Rahkshi, you fool. I gave them the heads and basic body shape, but ultimately, they're only _part _Rahkshi," Roodaka stopped herself right there as a thought came to her. "Part Rahkshi, part Toa Hagah," she said, a smirk forming on her lips, "That would make them… Rahaga. Yes I rather like that."

Suddenly, Nidhiki came up to them. "Sorry to interrupt- well, not really, but I thought you should know…" the insectoid trailed off as he noticed the mini-mutants in the cage, and he shuddered. Roodaka rolled her eyes at the pathetic look on the Dark Hunter's face. "Bring back memories, does it?" she asked, her voice mockingly sweet. Nidhiki snapped out of his daze and glared at the Vortixx female. "As a matter of fact, it _does_," he responded, snapping his claws.

Sidorak cleared his throat, obviously trying to get back on track and avoid a fight. "What did you think we should know?" he asked. Nidhiki turned his attention from the Vortixx to the Steltan and said, "I just got word from Krekka. Apparently, the two remaining Hagah just wiped the floor with him, and are heading this way." "Good," Roodaka said, "Make sure they find us."

Two pairs of crimson eyes stared at her in disbelief, and she once again rolled her own sapphire eyes. "It's called a 'trap', you imbeciles," she said, making sure to talk slowly so that her two cohorts would understand her, "Let them get well within our reach, then close the net on them."

She then turned her attention back to the newly-christened Rahaga, and gave a short, mirthless laugh as she coldly stated, "Besides, I want them to see what I did to their friends before I do it to them, too."

XXXXXXX

The next day, Roodaka was seriously reconsidering not simply having killed the two Hagah (Iruini and Norik, according to her information) when they had entered the valley she had encamped her forces in. She had been so confident in success that instead of blasting Iruini when he was right in front of her, she had gloated about what she had done to his comrades- and this gave Norik the perfect opportunity to sneak up with his Mask of Diminishment and knock her on her rear.

Seizing their chance, the two Toa had freed the four Rahagah, and then had covered their escape with a cyclone of molten lava created by a combination of Norik and Iruini's elemental powers. Infuriated, Roodaka had blindly launched a barrage of her Rhotuka spinners through the cyclone.

And when it cleared, she was greeted with the sight of _six_ small figures fleeing up the valley walls, rather than four small ones and two big ones.

'So, not a total loss,' she thought to herself, 'there's no way in Kharzhani they'll be accepted in any community now, Matoran or otherwise. So good luck passing that mask off to someone who can use it.' Her train of thought was interrupted as Nidhiki scuttled up to her, with a look on his face that implied that he was trying very hard not to laugh. "What do you want, insect?" she asked.

"Oh, nothing," the Dark Hunter replied in a sing-song voice, "I just thought you'd want to know how Lord Teridax is taking this." Roodaka's blood froze in her veins. She had allowed Sidorak to report back to the Makuta, as she had not been able to even _think_ of facing her beloved master after failing him. She knew she had very little chance of fulfilling her fantasies with Teridax under normal circumstances, but she'd have even less if he decided she wasn't even worthy of serving the Brotherhood. Heck, he'd probably kill her.

"Wh-What did he say?" she asked, swallowing the lump in her throat. Nidhiki raised a brow at the stutter, but ignored it and simply answered, "He was pleased." Roodaka blinked in surprise, then asked, "Really?" as a warm feeling spread throughout her body. "Oh yes," Nidhiki said, a smirk forming on his face, "He was very impressed with Sidorak's work." The warm feeling in Roodaka disappeared as she snapped her head around to look Nidhiki in the eye.

"What do you mean _**Sidorak's**_ work?!" she roared. Nidhiki chuckled, clearly enjoying his nemesis' shock and anger. "Didn't I mention?" he asked, "Sidorak's taking credit for the whole thing: the capture, the ambush, the mutations, all of it." Roodaka's body shook with anger, her vision turning red as the same thought ran in circles around her mind. 'Teridax is praising _him_, not _me_. _Him_ not _me_. _Him_. Not. _Me_!' With each pass of that thought through her mind, Roodaka's anger grew and grew, until she expressed it the only way she could.

"THAT SON OF A KAVINIKA! HE DIDN'T EVEN DO ANYTHING!"

"Well, I'm sure you can explain that to Lord Teridax," Nidhiki said, "He's bound to believe you. After all, Vortixx are such _honorable_ beings. He'd never even think you were lying to him." That was as far as he got before Roodaka grabbed him by the throat and slammed him into a nearby rock wall. "Your work here is done," she hissed, "so collect your payment, garb your idiotic friend, and get out of my sight." With that, the enraged female dropped the bug-like Dark Hunter to the ground, turned on her heel, and stormed off. She was fairly certain she heard him mumble, "Women," but she was in no mood to go back and hurt him some more.

She was too busy figuring out how many pieces of Sidorak's body she could remove before he died. Oh yes, he was going to pay _**dearly**_ for stealing Teridax's attention from her.

XXXXXXX

Several days later, the strike force (minus the Dark Hunters) was back on Destral, in the Throne Room of the Makuta fortress itself. Teridax sat upon the black stone throne, looking down on Sidorak and Roodaka, who were kneeling before him. On his right stood his second-in-command, Icarax, Makuta of Karzhani, and on his left stood Gorast, Makuta of the Tren Krom Peninsula. "You have done well, my loyal servants," Teridax said, his deep, rumbling voice sending shivers down Roodaka's spine, as usual.

"Tch," Icarax snorted, "Well? Not only did those traitors escape, they _still_ have the Avohkii. That doesn't sound 'well' to me at all." "When I want your opinion, Icarax, I'll give it to you," Teridax snapped, not even turning his head towards his right-hand lieutenant. Roodaka bit down on her lips to avoid laughing at that comment- it appealed to her dark sense of humor.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, sir," Gorast chimed in, "but I agree with Icarax." Teridax snorted and rolled his crimson eyes. "Let me spell it out for you two," he said, "The Avohkii can only be used against us if the Hagah- or perhaps I should say, Rahaga- can give it to a Toa capable of wielding its power. Because of their current state, they will most likely be driven away from any civilized place where they could even _find_ such a Toa. They are no longer a threat." The two other Makuta grumbled, but they didn't press the matter.

Teridax turned his attention back to Roodaka and Sidorak. "As I was saying, you have done well, and you shall be rewarded." The leader of the Brotherhood stood up, and walked towards the Steltan warrior kneeling before him. "For all your hard work, Sidorak," he stated, placing one giant hand on Sidorak's shoulder, "I have decided to appoint you King of the Visorak Horde." Sidorak blinked in surprise, then bowed his head and said, "Thank you, my lord, for this honor. I will-" "Wait a minute!" Gorast shouted, cutting off whatever speech (most likely pre-prepared) that Sidorak was going into. "Something wrong, sister?" Teridax asked dryly. "Yes, as a matter of fact, there is," the female Makuta said as she stomped up to her leader, "I worked long and hard to conquer the Horde-"

"No you didn't," Icarax interjected from his place by the throne, "You used the Heart to gather them all in one place, then you used your Rahi control power to enforce your will on them. That's not hard work." Gorast turned around, blasted Icarax into the wall with a shot of Lightning, then turned back to Teridax and picked up the conversation where she left off, "And now your just handing control of the Visorak over to this weakling?" "You cannot be in the field at all times, my friend," Teridax said, "We need someone to lead the Horde when you're busy." Teridax paused, and then said, "If it makes you feel better, I am making Roodaka Viceroy."

Roodaka, who had been glaring at Sidorak throughout the whole exchange, jerked her head up. "You are?" "Yes, I am," Teridax said, smiling down at her, "You have also proven yourself, my dear, and this way, we are guaranteed someone competent is in charge, should anything… _unfortunate_ happen to Sidorak." Roodaka, Sidorak, Gorast, and Icarax (who had pulled himself back to his feet), all stared at Teridax in confusion. However, his only response was to wink at Roodaka, then declare the meeting over.

Roodaka walked out of the Throne Room, her face feeling _extremely_ warm. Her moment of bliss was interrupted when Sidorak walked up beside her. "Well," he said, "it seems we're going to be working closely together from now on." He smirked at her, but the Vortixx's only response was, "For now." With that, she strode away from the Steltan, still planning the best way to get even with him.

XXXXXXX

The following three centuries were a blur to Roodaka. She and Sidorak led the Visorak Horde to the conquest of many lands, and all the while, Roodaka kept trying to get rid of her Steltan partner, so that she could rule the Horde, and truly earn Teridax's attention and respect. Unfortunately, the coward barely ever left whatever fortress he used at the time, so Roodaka couldn't "accidentally" get rid of him.

It didn't help matters that after the first few decades, Sidorak started insisting that they get married. "It's a win-win situation," he stated the first time to his wide-eyed Viceroy, "you'll become Queen of the Horde, and I'll gain influence on Xia, due to how well known you are there." Roodaka had stared at him, and then simply said, "No." And she had continued saying no… for three centuries. But Sidorak was persistent. Roodaka was just considering strangling "his majesty" in his sleep when they both were nearly knocked over by a presence in their minds. It took only seconds for Roodaka to recognize it as Teridax- she'd know his power anywhere.

It didn't take long to for them to receive the message their master was sending them- he'd failed in his mission to seize control of Metru Nui, and was now imprisoned within a Toa Seal.

Roodaka's heart had leapt into her throat when she got the message: Her master, who she loved more than anything, was a prisoner, his body frozen in place, only his mind able to move. Her nails dug into her palms as she silently swore she would make the Toa responsible for this indignation pay.

On the journey to the City of Legends, Teridax telepathically gave his minions more details on his defeat: He had successfully placed all the Matoran inhabitants of the island-city in suspended animation, and had even managed to kill the legendary Toa Lhikan (as well as Nidhiki and Krekka, which was a bonus in Roodaka's book). But before he could make his next move, the Toa Metru, a new Toa team created by Lhikan, had faced him in battle on the Great Barrier, eventually sealing him in a cage of solid Protodermis.

When they arrived in Metru Nui, Sidorak quickly established his headquarters in the Coliseum, and sent the Visorak out to capture and mutate anything that moved. Roodaka, on the other hand, made her way to her master's prison. After a few moments hesitation, she began carving a piece out of the Seal.

The pain was immeasurable. However, Roodaka continued to chip away at the Protodermis barrier in front of her with her claws until a good-sized chunk fell out. She quickly grabbed it and placed it over her heart, Teridax's presence in her mind increasing as she did so. She paused for a moment, basking in the feeling of her master's essence. Then she began limping her way back to the Coliseum- the energy forming the Toa Seal had damaged her body more than she had thought.

But it would be worth it. All the pain, all the suffering, it would all pay off when she freed Teridax. He would be grateful; he'd have to be. Maybe finally he would repay her affections.

It'd be nice to be happy for once.

XXXXXXX

Days later, Roodaka stood within the Coliseum, standing in front of the Toa Metru (now Hordika- how she'd _loved_ their shrieks of pain as they had mutated) and the Rahaga, of all people. She took a moment to contemplate how fate had come full circle, then dismissed such philosophical nonsense. She didn't believe in fate, like the Matoran, Toa, and Turaga. She _made_ her fate.

She nearly died laughing when the five Toa she hadn't managed to turn to her side fired their elemental Rhotuka spinners at her. She felt the energy course through her body into the stone she wore on her breastplate. And she felt Teridax laughing in her mind as the elemental energies were transferred to the Seal, negating what they had created and weakening the whole prison.

They were making this too easy.

She had already accomplished her long-term goal of removing Sidorak and gaining control of the Horde, courtesy of that meddlesome Rahi Keetongu. Now, the very Toa who had imprisoned her master were helping to release him. She had just absorbed five of the elements she needed, and she had already corrupted the final member of the team, Vakama, so it would just be a simple matter of draining his elemental energy to break the Seal and free Teridax.

Her eyes widened in shock, however, when Vakama turned on her, and, even more shockingly, he ordered the Visorak to scatter, giving them their freedom- and leaving Roodaka without any backup. Vakama then powered up his Rhotuka, and Roodaka braced herself. She was sure absorbing all six elements would kill her, but she didn't care. She was willing to die for Teridax, and if she had to too free him, so be it.

Time seemed to slow down as the red Rhotuka flew through the air at her, and she laughed, despite the pain as it hit her square in the stone embedded in her chest. Pain filled every corner of her body, but in her mind she felt Teridax's joy as the last layer of elemental energy in the Toa Seal was cancelled, shattering the Protodermis cage, and releasing the leader of the Makuta.

Then, darkness claimed her, and she knew no more.

XXXXXXX

She became aware of water lapping against her body, and she painfully pulled herself into a sitting position. Looking around, she found that she was on a small beach somewhere along the Silver Sea.

"It's about time you woke up," a wonderfully familiar voice said behind her. Heart nearly bursting with joy, Roodaka turned around to find Teridax, in all his glory, towering above her. "That's not very nice, Lord Teridax," she stated as she steadied herself against a boulder and pushed herself to her feet.

"Since when was I nice?"

Roodaka pondered that, then decided he had never been truly nice, not out of the kindness of his heart, so she simply said, "Never."

"Come," Teridax said, "we have work to do elsewhere." As they began to walk down the beach, Roodaka said, "I suppose that Lady Gorast and the others will be upset about the loss of the Horde." "That's putting it mildly," Teridax grumbled, "But don't worry, I won't let any harm come to you."

"Because I'm such a valuable asset?" Roodaka asked.

"Yes," Teridax said, before a smirk split his mask, "Plus, I also took the liberty to read your thoughts and memories when I was in your head." Roodaka stopped dead in her tracks, a huge blush making its way across her face. "Oh, I, uh," she stammered for a few moments, but stopped talking when Teridax turned around and stroked the side of her head with one of his fingers and shushed her.

"I won't be so bold as to pretend I'm capable of love, my dear," Teridax said softly, "but I could always use a consort. First thing's first, though, I'm afraid. I have a job for you. While you were unconscious, I had a little… spat with the Shadowed One. He's a little testy that I killed Nidhiki and Krekka, and has decided to declare war against the Brotherhood." Teridax snorted, then said, "A bit much for the death of two operatives, but what can I say? He's prideful. In any case, I need you to act as a double agent. Aid the Dark Hunters, help them with a few small victories if necessary, but just make sure you get high enough in their ranks to be able to feed me information that will help me to crush these weaklings. Do you think you can do that?"

"Anything for you, my lord," Roodaka said. She had felt light-headed ever since Teridax stated he would make her his consort- it wasn't what she'd hoped for, but she'd take what she could get. "Good," Teridax said, "And know this: When the Plan has succeded, and I have taken Mata Nui's place as ruler of this universe, I will reward your loyalty- and your love- and make you my queen. Now come, we need to drop you off somewhere where the Hunters will find you."

As they continued down the beach, Roodaka couldn't help but smile. She didn't know how long it would take this "Plan" to succeed, but she didn't care. She would manipulate the Hunters and anyone else she needed to in the meantime, so that, in the end, she would be by Teridax's side when he remade the universe in his glorious image.

And together, they would rule.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

**End**

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

**A/N: Okay, I know the ending's a little bleah, but 1) I'm tired, and 2) I'm really no good at writing romantic drama.**

**And I apologize for any OOCness here, but I couldn't think of a way to keep these two really in character and still write romance.**

**Anyway, please read & review.**


End file.
